Capitalism Is Not What You Thought It Was

(Dotard inner monologue tweeting voice) Many are or were under the mistaken impression that capitalism is supposed to work for them. Sad!

What these people, many of them supporters of the Dotard, have learned and don’t like is that capitalism is the free movement of goods, technology, services, capital, and labor. It exists to service demand and profit-making using the most efficient and therefore best usage of those movable assets.

On the other hand, nation-states and borders or boundaries are artificial lines that prevent and or slow down flows. Most companies, and particularly American companies, main objective is to maximize shareholder wealth. Therefore, as good capitalists, if the most efficient and best use of goods, technology, services, capital and labor is overseas, then that’s where it will go. Some call this principle globalism.

What’s hot in the streets now though a la derecha is making people pay for bad career decisions (coal). What’s really good now is that people who were all about ‘free markets’ aren’t when it comes to their own employment. Now that their jobs are in jeopardy, it’s about protectionist and nationalist policy within their own borders. Suddenly, it’s about controls on movement of capital, labor, technology, skills and services, imposed by the government no less!

Don’t get me wrong. There are still stalwarts. Corporate America is sitting on 2.5 trillion dollars, yet many still believe that allowing them to retain even through lessened taxes will make the life of the middle class better. That sounds like our old friends, but the reality of capitalism is bringing many on the right to the left.

During the Brexit campaign, Nigel Farage (arch capitalist and racist) and George Galloway (arch socialist) were in complete agreement about getting out of the EU to protect jobs and wages for UK workers. This is exactly Steve Bannon is preaching when he says the left (proposed a 44% tax on the rich) and the right (He was the Dotard’s lead strategist) should unite under the banner of economic nationalism meaning what’s in the best interest of straight, white, Christian males.

The irony is that the Dotard is as globalist as they come, but oddly his followers think or thought he was a nationalist. It’s why they are so confused by his cabinet choices and advisers full of investment bankers from the dreaded Goldman Sachs. In reality, he was really just exploiting their prejudices which works fine for nationalism as long as there are other countries with resources to exploit.